Capitals Announce Changes to Front Office and Coaching Staff

ARLINGTON, Va.
– The Washington Capitals will not renew
the contract of vice president and general manager George McPhee and have
relieved head coach Adam Oates of his duties, majority owner Ted Leonsis and
president Dick Patrick announced today.

“George has been a terrific,
longtime executive for our franchise, and I’m grateful for his commitment to
the Capitals organization for the past 17 years,” said Leonsis. “Under his
leadership the Capitals won seven division titles, twice were the top team in
the Eastern Conference, earned a Presidents’ Trophy and competed in the
playoffs 10 times. He was a highly effective manager who is extremely well
regarded within our organization and around the NHL. We have the utmost respect
for him and his family and wish them nothing but the very best.

“We are also appreciative of
Adam’s efforts and thank him for his devotion, work ethic and contributions to
the Capitals the past two seasons. He is a smart, tactical coach who improved
the performance of several of our players. He is a Hall of Fame player who we
believe will be a longtime coach in the NHL. We will help him in whatever way
we are able and wish him well.

This is an important time for our
organization, and I feel a change is needed in order to get us back to being a
top echelon team that competes for the Stanley Cup.”

Leonsis and Patrick will be
available to the media today, April 26 at 4 p.m. in the Verizon Center media
room.

Media
interested in attending today’s press conference are asked to contact Megan
Eichenberg in the Capitals media relations department at meichenberg@washcaps.com to
ensure building access.